Special Circumstance Drop or Withdrawal

The Office of Student Affairs will consider a special circumstance withdrawal if the criteria for the withdrawal is met. The criteria set is subject to change at the discretion of the Office of Student Affairs. All necessary paperwork related to the special circumstance withdrawal process should be submitted to the Office of Student Affairs at Special Circumstances Drop or Withdrawal Form (maxient.com). All necessary paperwork related to a specific course drop because of special circumstance should be submitted to Enrollment and Student Achievement at Special Circumstance Drop or Withdrawal Form (maxient.com)

Drop
A request of a specific course drop because of exigent circumstance can be requested and must be processed through the office of Enrollment and Student Achievement. This exigent drop could include courses that require physical activity that may be untenable because of health considerations. A special drop can be enacted for any courses that do not fully withdraw the student from the semester. As an example, if the student needs to drop from 12 credit hours to 3 credit hours, the special drop is the applicable option. If the student needs to drop all currently attended courses, then a withdrawal is required.

Backdated Withdrawal
This type of withdrawal is for an event that has occurred that will require special circumstance withdrawal from all classes at the university. Backdated withdrawals can only be enacted for the currently active semester – as an example, if at the beginning of the semester a special circumstance listed below occurred that prevented attendance for greater than 10 calendar days, then you are able to request a backdated withdrawal.

Retroactive Withdrawal
This type of withdrawal is for an event that has occurred that will require special circumstance withdrawal from all classes at the university in a semester that is not currently active. Retroactive withdrawals are needed if the student has a special circumstance that made them unable to attend the university in a previous semester. As an example, if a student has one of the described events below occur during the Fall Semester, and they are requesting special circumstance withdrawal during a new semester, such as Spring, they must use the retroactive withdrawal request.

Qualifying Factors related to a Drop or Withdrawal
Special circumstance drop or withdrawal requires official paperwork that specifically notes the student’s inability to attend during the requested period of time for drop or withdrawal. The following circumstances are currently considered:

Military

• Field training exercises
• Military active deployment
• Military deployment (training)
• PCS orders
• School training orders

Health

• Hospitalization
• Immediate family member death
• Immediate family emergency
• Doctor’s statement that includes the student’s inability to attend for a specific or prolonged time period
• Counselor or therapist statement that include the student’s inability to attend for a specific or prolonged time period

Other

• Police reports
• Documentation that may support your request that is not listed above
  
  

Please keep in mind that this appeal is subject to review by the corresponding offices. 

Special Circumstance Withdrawal Request: submit to Student Affairs at Special Circumstances Drop or Withdrawal (maxient.com)

Special Circumstance Drop Request: submit to Enrollment and Student Achievement at Special Circumstances Drop or Withdrawal (maxient.com)